Though the relatively young DC Extended Universe may not be able to hold a candle to Marvel’s cinematic output in terms of character density, that gap is quickly closing. While a complete catalogue of both comic publishers' character roster would be a daunting affair, DC has more than enough heroes and villains that it can pull from over the coming years. In fact, many of them are likely to make the jump to the big screen, as DC and Warner Bros. are proposing over a dozen new projects in the next few years.
Justice League alone will help to greatly expand the DCEU’s pantheon later this year, but Wonder Woman has managed to do quite a bit of heavy lifting already. Like Thor’s stable of characters in Marvel Comics, Wonder Woman’s fantastical setting allows the series to mix real-world mythology with comic book lore to create its own unique milieu of characters. And even before the massive success of the first film ensured a sequel, Wonder Woman has already brought quite a few comic characters to the big screen. Of course, they didn’t make the journey without some changes, so here’s how the various characters from Wonder Woman compare to the comics.
Wonder Woman
With over 75 years of history in the comics, it’s almost impossible to say Wonder Woman has one definitive backstory. Not only are comics constantly retconning the history of various characters, but DC’s reboot-happy approach to publishing means nothing lasts forever. Still, a number of throughlines have remained over the years, many of which are on display in Wonder Woman.
Created by William Moulton Marston and Harry G. Peter, Wonder Woman first appeared in 1941’s All Star Comics #8. An Amazon warrior from Paradise Island, Wonder Woman would eventually journey into the world of man to fight the Nazis in World War II. Shortly thereafter, she’d join up with the Justice Society of America, though sadly only as the team’s secretary. Soon, she’d take a proper role on the team, proving to be one of the strongest and most popular characters on DC’s growing roster. She’s also often been associated with various feminist movements in the comics and real life, including the suffragette cause to allow women the right to vote.
DC’s various reboots have changed Princess Diana’s history a number of times, with the biggest change being her home island renamed as Themyscira. Her mother Hippolyta, her war with Ares, and her relationship with Steve Trevor have all remained fairly consistent. And while Wonder Woman moved Diana’s first adventure in Man’s World to World War I to avoid comparisons to Captain America: The First Avenger, the story serves effectively the same purpose.
Steve Trevor
Though Steve Trevor has been around just as long as Wonder Woman, his more straightforward nature and lesser impact means he hasn’t undergone as many changes. Appearing in the same issue Wonder Woman debuted in, Trevor is a pilot in World War II working for the OSS who crash lands on Paradise Island. Not only is he the first man Diana ever meets, but he’s the first one to ever step foot in the Amazonian homeland.
He’d soon join forces with Diana as she fought injustice, serving as an inversion of the typical damsel in distress. Through the years, he and Diana have had an on-again, off-again relationship, but they often come back together. Aside from the change of war, the Trevor see meet in Wonder Woman is nearly identical to the one that’s existed in the comics for decades.
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Hippolyta
Though we don’t get to spend a lot of time with Hippolyta, she’ll likely be back for the sequel. Even better, but she’ll be making an appearance in Justice League later this year. The powerful ruler of the Amazons, Hippolyta is also the mother to Diana. Though not as much of a fighter as her family members, she’s still a formidable foe.
Debuting alongside Diana and Steve in All Star Comics #8, Hippolyta (then spelled Hippolyte) is inspired by the mythological queen of the same name. Like in the ancient stories, she’s the ruler of the Amazons who live on Paradise Island after a ploy by Ares and Hercules temporarily robs them of their power. Free from the influence of men, they’re able to reign in peace and happiness while wielding extraordinary abilities. Later additions had the Amazons created by the core goddesses of the Greek pantheon, and added a dark new piece of backstory with Ares involving the god of war raping Hippolyta.
In the film, the Amazons are said to be the creations of Zeus and a means to dissuade men from war and pain. Eventually, this proves a folly and they recede to their own island. Like Diana’s story in Wonder Woman, the comics had Hippolyta shaping her daughter out of clay. Later renditions would then add the demi-god status, enabling Wonder Woman to channel lightning like in the film. The exact extent of Hippolyta’s backstory is still unknown in the DCEU, but it appears to be a fairly faithful adaptation of her comic history.
Antiope
In the movies, comics, and classic stories, Antiope is an Amazon and sister to Hippolyta. Rather than being enemies of Ares, Greek mythology makes the sisters the daughters of the god of war. In the comics, however, Antiope’s story follows along with Hippolyta, with the older sister serving as queen while the younger acts as the island’s general.
Unlike Diana, Hippolyta, and Steve, Antiope didn’t appear in the comics until 1984’s Wonder Woman #312. Like her sister, she’s long feuded with Ares and fought injustice in the world alongside Diana. Eventually, she’d split with her sister and take a band of Amazons off Themyscira to populate Greece and later Egypt.
While her short tenure in the Wonder Woman movie means we don’t learn much about her backstory, she too will return during a flashback in Justice League. Luckily, what we’ve seen of her in the DCEU so far is true to form, with Antiope being the most powerful Amazonian warrior until Diana comes into her own.
Artemis
DC actually has two characters named Artemis, but only one is an Amazon. First appearing in 1994’s Wonder Woman #90, Artemis is part of Antiope’s Amazon sect who live in Egypt. For a time, she works with them and has a number of side adventures. Eventually, she and the other members of her faction join in with Hippolyta’s bunch to protect Themyscira.
Following that incident, Hippolyta has a prophetic dream of Diana dying. In a bizarre effort to protect her, she demands a new Wonder Woman be chosen. Artemis ends up taking the mantle, serving as the hero until her death. Of course, death is never permanent in comics and she soon returns.
Obviously, much of this backstory was removed in the films, though in theory some of it could still happen. Other than show of her impressive physical prowess, we don’t spend any concrete time with Artemis in the film, so how well she compares to the comics is still unknown.
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Ares
Not all of the Greek inspirations in Wonder Woman comics are heroic, as Ares has long served as the chief antagonist to the Amazons and Diana herself. Following the success of Wonder Woman in All Star Comics, 1942 saw her first solo title arrive with Ares appearing as the main foe of Diana. By the next issue, his Roman name Mars was used, which he retained until the late ‘80s. Originally, he looked like a Roman Centurion, but in time he’d come to wear armor quite similar to what we see in the movie.
Jealous of the Amazons, Ares has constantly tried invading Themyscira and destroying Diana and her family. For a time, he even held down a base on his namesake planet, populated by a number of minions. As we see in the climax of the film, Ares has a whole slew of powers, from super-strength to energy blasts. His defeat in the films means his long comic book history won’t be adapted to the DCEU, but his broad strokes from both the comics and mythology are mostly intact. Even his posing as a mortal to stoke conflict is perfectly inline with the source material.
Etta Candy
Etta Candy has been a staple of Wonder Woman comics almost from the beginning. Created by the same duo that came up with Diana, Etta makes her debut in 1942’s Sensation Comics #2 before reappearing in Wonder Woman’s second solo issue. In the DC Comics universe, she’s a wisecracking and sassy sorority leader from Texas who serves as Diana’s best friend. Eventually, a number of reboots would turn her into an Air Force office, Steve Trevor’s wife, and a spy before the New 52 reboot positioned her as Trevor’s secretary.
The Etta we see on screen in Wonder Woman certainly retains much of the pluck exhibited by her comic book incarnation, but a lot about her has been changed. Though we don’t know much about her past, she’s shown to be British and a bit befuddled. Still, she diligently serves as Steve’s secretary, shows a real knack for navigating the world, and quickly takes a shine to Diana. Fans of the comedic character may not be completely mollified, but the Etta Candy of the DCEU is still a close approximation of her comic book counterpart.
Doctor Poison
The final major comic book character we meet in Wonder Woman is Doctor Maru. Better known as Doctor Poison, like many of Wonder Woman’s core characters, Maru was created by Marston and Peter in the early ‘40s. First showing up in Sensation Comics #2 in 1942—the same issue that introduced Etta—Maru is a poison expert with the Nazis who disguises herself as a man and slips into an Allied base. After capturing Steve Trevor and trying to torture him, she’s eventually stopped by Wonder Woman and revealed. From there, she only has a smattering of appearance in DC Comics, but she’s a fitting secondary foe for Diana to tackle in her first film.
Though she’s given a more tragic personality and an interesting set of scars and facial prosthesis, she bears a lot in common with her character in the comics. Even the disguise she wears in the comics is mirrored in Maru’s mask and goggles in the film. The one major change is she now works for the Germans during World War I, but Ludendorff—incidentally, a real life German commander in the war—and his work with chemical weapons provide a strong analogy to the work the Nazis were doing. There’s no telling if Doctor Poison will return to the DCEU, but her character provides the film with a fascinating foe for Diana and Steve.
